"Wild" Old Black Horse -
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This black horse and his white buddy roamed our hunting area for a number of years. The white horse disappeared, I believe, in the late 1980s, the black one was around until sometime in the mid 1990s. I don't believe any hunters ever got closer than 50-100 yards to either one, they often surprised hunters on game trails, and would immediately disappear in the black timber. I've heard that local ranchers had tried to entice the black horse into their corrals with hay in the winter time, but the old horse would get so close and then take off like a bat out of Hades. Both horses must have spent some tough winters in the foothills where the winter temperatures run 20-30 degrees below zero often with a foot or two of snow on the ground. During the hunting season both horses looked healthy and well fed. I never had a chance to see them in the early spring. They must have looked rather tough after a winter of pawing at the snow to get to the grass to feed.

Wyoming Big game success rate good so far - by Carole CloudwalkerCody Enterprise - Cody,WY,USA... black bear have been good. But success in moose and antelope hunts has lagged, and deer hunting "is quite slow," McWhirter said". ...

Backroads with Ron &Raven"ESPN - USAJust recently I returned from Colorado's Black Mountains with more elk hunting information. By adding my most recent elk experience ...

Cole and Waugh Mountain Bull Rack - 1965
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10/4/2004 3:45:45 PM Mountain Daylight Time
From: Cole
To: Glenn

The antlers are from Waugh Mountain, north and west of Canon City, near the Stirup Ranch. Henry, Charlie and I were hunting there one fall and I ran onto a bear and followed it to where it had made a kill. Henry and Charlie cut the rack, feet and ivory out and Henry and I went back a couple days later to take the bear. When we returned the weather was still bad and it had dropped another two feet of snow on top of the first foot. We had a hard time finding the site as the bear had moved the carcass another fifty yards down hill and had been sleeping with it, along with the crows and the coyotes. When we saw the size and the shape of the bear paws in the snow Henry said " If you see that SOB coming, empty your rifle because we'll never out run him in this snow and as high up in the trees as he's been swatting at the crows he'll reach us for sure."

I have some pictures of Henry and I holding up the rack on Kenny's picnic table. He was down working on Margaret's kitchen and we hadn't taken any pictures up to that point. Maybe I can send them to you to scan, but they're kind of old and Henry and I look like a couple of kids in them.

The rack hung in Henry's garage for many years until Charlie got the six point at Tarryall. I had the cape tanned and had it mounted. It scored 360 something but still wasn't large enough for Boon and Crockett.

We never got the bear. Waugh Mountain is just east of Black Mountain, where Old Mose was killed, Colorado's legendary grizzly, notorious for killing livestock and humans ( The death of Jake Radcliff and Old Mose), back in the early 1900s. I swear the one I saw was his son. The guy I was with when we saw the bear, asked me what we were going to do with it when we caught up to it as the tracks were bigger than ours in the snow.

The Stirup Ranch used to be owned by Rick" Goose" Gossage who I went to school with. Goose later ended up pitching for the New York Yankees.

There is a book on Old Mose if you are interested I have a copy.

Cole

Tarryall Elk Camp Hunters - 2003 (Don, Darrel and Jason) (Click on picture to enlarge and see the results of a great shot)
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No one can dispute that Colorado's deer herds have recovered

October 26th, 2004

Roy and Elaine Johnson know a thing or two about hunting season

Montrose Daily Press - Montrose,CO,USA... and elk heads, as well as a mountain lion, bighorn sheep and antelope mounts ... Elaine Johnson has a customized 7x57 Mauser that she uses for deer hunting and 7mm ... style="font-size:130%;color:#33ccff;">

October 25th, 2004 - Second Combined Rifle Season (Oct 16-24)

Talked to Al A. and he indicated that his group seen about thirty head of deer on private property near SH 77 and US 24 last weekend, "all baldheaded" no bucks in the bunch. This was the only deer seen.
They also ran into a good size herd of elk south of the reservoir, some bulls in the heard, but a short burst of snowy weather moved in on them too fast to get any shooting.

October 24th, 2004

Kenney S held out for that big Wyoming Antelope Buck and got it the last day of the season, said the Prongs measured about 16 inches -- have I got that right Kenney.

October 22, 2004
The Weather Service has reported that elevations above 10,000 feet have received as much as 15 inches of new snow. Some ski areas are now open. From all indications the Front Range did not fare as well with little or no snow accumulation.

For current weather and road conditions click CDOT Real Time Roads and Weather . You can also link to this site from the right sidebar. You can view live video from certain locations throughout Colorado showing highway and weather condition. Check it out, quite interesting.

Pre-Hunt Survey - October 17th, 2004

Made a pre-hunt survey of GMU 50 and 501 today, can't say that it looked very promising. Several camps along FR 39 and the Turner Gulch/Lasalle Pass area but no game hanging and did not find any hunters that had even seen game. This is the 2nd Rifle combined season (October 16 - 24). Some snow and colder weather might help, the current weather forecast indicates this might happen this next week. Seen a number of sled dog teams as well as hunters on horseback on the road. The sled dog teams had caution signs out warning that they were working their dogs on the roads.

CWD TESTING UNDERWAY FOR 2004 HUNTING SEASONS

Hunters have access this year to 26 different CWD submission sites at DOW offices. Hunters may also submit heads through participating veterinarians in 30 locations around the state. For a complete list of submission sites, addresses, and hours of operation, click on the chronic wasting disease page at the DOW Web site at http://wildlife.state.co.us/CWD/index.asp

Extracted from DOW INSIDER 10/15/04.

06-0480c Jan 2003

I was sure I was dead

Hunter: 'I was sure I was dead'
The Casper Star Tribune - Casper,WY,USA
... Scott said he was "kind of excited." He thought it was a big bull elk. ... Officials say the animal was then killed by a hunting companion who said the bear was ...

COOLER, WETTER WEATHER COULD HELP HUNTER SUCCESS

COOLER, WETTER WEATHER COULD HELP HUNTER SUCCESS RATES DURING SEASON OPENER

Colorado's first rifle elk season begins this Saturday and, as always, hunter success will depend mostly upon the weather. Hunters who have planned their elk hunt for the first season have reason to be optimistic due to cooler, wetter weather in the high country.

Colorado's current elk population stands at an estimated 279,000 animals, down from more than 305,000 in 2001, thanks to effective herd-management strategies in recent years.

"We continue to make progress in reducing Colorado's abundant elk herds as a way of improving the long-term health of these animals and their habitats," said John Ellenberger, big game coordinator for the Colorado Division of Wildlife (DOW). "And we will continue to issue a large number of cow and either-sex licenses to further reduce herds where they are over objective."

This year, hunters might have a significant advantage if cool, wet weather persists through the state's four rifle seasons. For the past several years, hunter success has been hindered by drought conditions throughout the state; unseasonably hot and dry weather causes animals to congregate in cool, dark timber, making it more difficult to track them.

Thanks to higher precipitation and cooler temperatures this autumn, hunter success rates for this year's archery season were about normal. Post-season reports indicate that Colorado's archery hunters may have found it easier to track animals. Even so, weather traditionally does not have as large an effect on archery hunter success as it does on rifle season success.

From the reports I have heard, we had a normal archery season in terms of hunter success, Ellenberger said. Approximately one-fifth of total hunting pressure takes place during the primitive seasons. It tends to be more of a recreational season than the rifle seasons, which play more of a game-management role.

Harvest statistics show that archers have accounted for a little more than 10 percent of the total harvest in recent years.

Still, there is always the possibility of too much of a good thing when it comes to weather. Continuous heavy snow or rain throughout the rifle seasons, which last through early November, can hinder hunter access and again drive down hunter success rates. DOW biologists are hoping that the 2004 season will have the right amount of precipitation to keep success rates high and equal or crest the 2003 harvest of more than 57,000 elk.

If this weather persists into the rifle seasons and as long as roads remain in good condition, guys could have some great hunting conditions, Ellenberger said.

Hunters who want to take advantage of what could be favorable conditions heading into the 2004 big game seasons still have plenty of opportunity. The DOW still has leftover licenses for bulls and cows and there are over-the-counter bull licenses available for many areas of the state.

For a current list of remaining leftover licenses visit: http://wildlife.state.co.us/Leftoverlicenses/.

Over-the-counter bull licenses for the second, third and fourth rifle seasons are available from license agents throughout the state, DOW offices and on the DOW Web site at: http://wildlife.state.co.us/total_licensing/.

Hunters can also purchase these licenses by calling 1-800-244-5613. The product code for nonresident over-the-counter bull elk licenses is 026. The product code for resident over-the-counter bull elk licenses is 022.

A nonresident bull elk license costs $490.25. A nonresident cow elk license is $250.25. A resident bull or cow elk license costs $30.25. All Hunters born on or after Jan. 1, 1949, must have proof of hunter education to purchase a hunting license in Colorado. # # #

For more information about Division of Wildlife go to: http://wildlife.state.co.us.

Tarryall 1991- Henry with spike bull and a couple cows
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More elk stories

HUNTING LICENSE SALES UP FROM LAST YEAR
KJCT - Grand Junction,CO,USA
Colorado hunters are prepping their equipment as rifle elk hunting season is set to begin this week. ... The first season of rifle hunting for elk begins Oct. ...

Second Gillette man attacked by grizzly
Gillette News Record - Gillette WY,USA
Another Gillette man has been attacked by a grizzly bear, this time while elk hunting west of Dubois in Teton County. Weston Scott ...

No Pain, No Elk
Field and Stream - USA
... As if anything in this harsh country--least of all a herd of bull elk that has probably made it through four hunting seasons--plays by the rules of the ...

Relatives say grizzly attack victim recovering in Idaho
The Casper Star Tribune - Casper,WY,USA
DUBOIS, Wyo. (AP) -- Relatives of a Gillette man attacked by a grizzly bear while elk hunting say he is recovering in an Idaho hospital. ... Doctors put a titanium plate in Cash's temple to cover a quarter-sized wound from a tooth. He also needed dozens of staples and stitches in his head and three pins in his hand.

RMNP Royal Bull Elk - October 2, 2004 - the tree behind the bull with bark rubbed off is a tree the bulls have used to rub the velvet from their horns. Click to enlarge for printing or viewing.
07-218 Photo credit Jon Sercel

Colorado's first 2004 rifle elk season

HUNTERS ENJOY SUCCESSFUL FIRST RIFLE ELK SEASON

Judging by reports from Colorado Division of Wildlife (DOW) biologists throughout the state, Colorado's first rifle elk season seemed to provide success rates equal to or better than last year.

For more information about Division of Wildlife go to: http://wildlife.state.co.us.

Extracted from DOW INSIDER 10/15/04

Tarryall Elk Camp Hunters - 1993
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Hunter bags albino bear

Hunter bags albino bear near Whitefish
Billings Gazette - Billings,MT,USA
"I was just out elk hunting," Rob Derby said. "We were trying to get a bull to come in. We were bugling. We started walking along ...

Colorado Elk Hunting Report

Colorado ELK hunters should succeed under right conditions
Denver Post - Denver,CO,USA

... Observers also report that elk remain at relatively high elevation across much of the ... well as to private land with less pressure or where no hunting is allowed ...